2008 Woodie Awards
Belmont to host presidential debate
Michael Guggisberg
Issue date: 12/3/07 Section: News
On Nov. 19, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced that Nashville's Belmont University will host the Town Hall Presidential Debate on Oct. 7, 2008.
Belmont was chosen above 16 national sites to host one of the three presidential debates, and this historic selection will be distinguished as the first time the state of Tennessee has ever held the event.
"It is a distinct privilege to be chosen to host the Town Hall Presidential Debate," Belmont President Bob Fisher said. "This opportunity will provide an invaluable educational experience to our students, allowing them to observe firsthand our nation's political process and to be participants in American history. We are also pleased that the candidates and all of our distinguished guests will have an opportunity to witness the many benefits offered by the greater Nashville community."
The university will accommodate 5,500 patrons, and is expected to attract more than 2,500 members of the media to Nashville, in tow with the candidates' campaigns and supporters, and will subsequently be viewed by millions worldwide. For the first time in what could take decades to repeat, the debate offers a chance for Middle Tennesseans to see both presidential candidates in person and in the community.
"It is always good to get the presidential candidates in your state," MTSU Chair of the Political Science Department John Vile said. "Candidates always have to consider air coverage, and one of the beauties of Tennessee is that it has so many state borders, and it gets more publicity from the surrounding states." Vile is also an author on the subject. In 2002, Presidential Winners and Losers: Words of Victory and Concession was published, and he iterated the insistence states have toward reeling in the candidates. Sometimes they even move up their caucuses in order to get the candidates sooner.
Presidential debates mark a close to the election cycle, as the candidates of both major parties will have been decided upon. In three rounds of debate, they argue on all of the current, hot-button issues, and accordingly, provide a preview of their would-be presidency. Since 1960, the debates have been broadcast on radio and television, and from Nixon and Kennedy to Bush and Kerry, they have drawn millions of viewers interested in the election.
Belmont was chosen above 16 national sites to host one of the three presidential debates, and this historic selection will be distinguished as the first time the state of Tennessee has ever held the event.
"It is a distinct privilege to be chosen to host the Town Hall Presidential Debate," Belmont President Bob Fisher said. "This opportunity will provide an invaluable educational experience to our students, allowing them to observe firsthand our nation's political process and to be participants in American history. We are also pleased that the candidates and all of our distinguished guests will have an opportunity to witness the many benefits offered by the greater Nashville community."
The university will accommodate 5,500 patrons, and is expected to attract more than 2,500 members of the media to Nashville, in tow with the candidates' campaigns and supporters, and will subsequently be viewed by millions worldwide. For the first time in what could take decades to repeat, the debate offers a chance for Middle Tennesseans to see both presidential candidates in person and in the community.
"It is always good to get the presidential candidates in your state," MTSU Chair of the Political Science Department John Vile said. "Candidates always have to consider air coverage, and one of the beauties of Tennessee is that it has so many state borders, and it gets more publicity from the surrounding states." Vile is also an author on the subject. In 2002, Presidential Winners and Losers: Words of Victory and Concession was published, and he iterated the insistence states have toward reeling in the candidates. Sometimes they even move up their caucuses in order to get the candidates sooner.
Presidential debates mark a close to the election cycle, as the candidates of both major parties will have been decided upon. In three rounds of debate, they argue on all of the current, hot-button issues, and accordingly, provide a preview of their would-be presidency. Since 1960, the debates have been broadcast on radio and television, and from Nixon and Kennedy to Bush and Kerry, they have drawn millions of viewers interested in the election.
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